Bucket actuated means for excavator

ABSTRACT

A power transfer mechanism for excavator bucket operation by fluid actuator means effective upon a working point, to which a rocker arm is journaled from a dipper arm pivot located above the turning axis of the bucket and to which a coupling member is journaled from a bucket pivot located below the turning axis of the bucket. A bucket front portion is tiltable during bucket opening and closing with respect to a turning point shaft in radial alignment with semicircular formed guide slot means of a box-formed housing of the bucket back portion. A housing cover provides access to parts including fluid actuator means protected in the box-formed housing and used to effect tiltable movement of the front portion with respect to the back portion of the bucket.

United States Patent" I inventor Gotthardt Drieschner Dortmund-Wellinghoien, German 769,653 Oct. 22, 1968 May 11, 1971 Orenstein-KoppelAktiengesellschait Dortmund-Dorstfeld, Germany Oct. 26, 1967 Germany Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee Priority BUCKET ACTUATED MEANS FOR EXCAVATGR 9 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

U.S.Cl 214/138, 214/146, 37/103,37/117.5 E02f3/74 214/138,

Int. Cl Field of Search [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,207,340 9/1965 Bienaimew, 214/138 3,209,474 10/ 1965 Artman Primary Examiner-Gerald M. Forlenza Assistant Examiner-Frank E. Werner Attorney-Walter Becker ABSTRACT: A power transfer mechanism for excavator bucket operation by fluid actuator means efiective upon a working point, to which a rocker arm is joumaled from a dipper arm pivot located above the turning axis of the bucket and to which a coupling member is joumaled from a bucket pivot located below the turning axis of the bucket. A bucket front portion is tiltable during bucket opening and closing with respect to a turning point shaft in radial alignment with semicircular formed guide slot means of a box-formed housing of the bucket back portion. A housing cover provides access to parts including fluid actuator means protected in the box- 1 formed housing and used to effect tiltable movement of the front portion with respect to the back portion of the bucket.

Patented May 11, 1971 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 'iunI-hununu INVENTOR GOTTHARDT nau-rsc HNER Patented May 11, 1971 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ,GOTTHARDT DRIESCHNER 1 BUCKET ACTUATED MEANS FOR EXCAVATOR The present invention relates to a hydraulically operated heavy excavating machine having a bucket joumaled to a swing boom and pivotable dipper arm. A front portion of the bucket is able to be lifted up with respect to a backwall and under hydraulic actuation of the excavating machine.

Hydraulic excavating machines are provided with buckets when loading work is to be carried out by means of a tilting or tipping motion around a linkage point on a dipper arm for unloading into a vehicle standing below the loading bucket. It often occurs that the loading surface under such circumstances is considerably above the ground level. Because of the dumping angle, an exact determination of the unloading location cannot be achieved safely by the operator, so that the load material may damage the sidewalls of the truck or loada-- ble vehicle and difficulties are encountered in loading the vehicle entirely evenly.

To make possible a better aimed unloading, scoops have been developed comprising a bottom which is a trap door capable of being opened for unloading. Such scoops which are actuated by means of a swing boom and dipper arm serve for excavating of deep dredgings and also for obtaining material along vertical walls. Grasping work cannot be carried out with the trap door. Also, such scoops are cumbersome to actuate since in most cases they are rigidly secured to the dipper arm. An object of the present invention is to provide power transfer mechanism for excavator bucket operation which overcomes the foregoing disadvantages, drawbacks and difficulties A further object of the invention is to provide a loading bucket for a hydraulically operably heavy excavating machine which is usable for takingup and unloading load materials in such a way that in addition the two main portions of which the bucket consists are movable as to each other and can be used also for grasping purposes. I

A further object according to this invention is to provide a loading bucket pivotally connected to a dipper arm swingably joumaled to the beam of the excavator in such a way that the power transfer of the hydraulic cylinder, which actuates the bucket, is effected by means of a link swingably joumaled to the dipper arm above the turning point of the bucket and by means of a coupling member connecting the interengaging pivot point of the hydraulic cylinder and link to a coupling pivot point below the bueket-tuming point. The loading bucket is thus pivotally movable at a lower end of the dipper arm joumaled to the excavator as a swinging arm carried by the overhanging beam.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawings in which an embodiment is shown as follows:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the excavating machine provided with a hydraulically actuated loading bucket having features in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the bucket of the present invention in an open condition;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the bucket actuating cylinder mechanism having a box formed housing therewith.

Further in accordance with the present invention the sidewalls forming the side limits of the backwall consists of an inner sidewall, an outer sidewall and bands interconnecting these inner and outer sidewalls for protective accommodation on all sides of the swing actuating mechanism of the bucket front portion in the form of a box-shaped housing, surrounding the hydraulic actuated cylinder means. The present invcntion makes it possible to load surfaces that are located high above the ground level with a minimum falling distance of the load material. The operator can thus more easily distribute the load material evenly on a loading surface than with previously customary tiltablc load buckets with excavating machines and thus there is achieved a better utilization of the loading surface.

Referring now more particularly to FIG. 1, the excavating machine is movable by means of a track mechanism provided with an upper body 2 turnable abouta vertical turning pivot axis upon an undercarriage in a well-known manner. For actuation of the loading bucket 3 there is provided a cantilever or an overhanging beam, pivotally joumaled on the upper body 2 by means of a hydraulic cylinder actuator 4 and on the free and of which a dipper arm is joumaled. For pivotable movement, a loading bucket 3 is tiltably joumaled to the free end of the dipper arm. FIG. 2 shows the detail of linkage of the loading bucket 3 to the end of the dipper arm 6. The bucket is tiltably secured to the turning point 7 on the dipper arm 6. Ac tuation results by means of a hydraulic cylinder actuator 8, having a piston rod 9 engaging a free end of the dipper arm 6 and joumaled by rocker arm or link 11 about a turning point 10 and turning point 12. The loading bucket is journaled in a turning point 14 by means of a coupling member 13 by which the movement of the cylinder actuator 8 and thereby that of the rocker arm or link 11 is transmitted onto the loading bucket 3. The loading bucket 3 itself consist of the following parts: A backwall 15, which is joumaled by means of a transverse axis 7 on the dipper arm 6; on the backwall portion 15 the bucket front portion 16 is likewise pivotally joumaled by means of a rotating shaft 17 on the backwall 15. The sidewalls 18 of the backwall 15 surround the hydraulic cylinder actuator 19 which operates the bucket front portion 16 and the piston shaft 20 operates through a bolt 22 upon lever 21 that is effective upon the turning shaft 17 joumaled in the front portion 16. The hydraulic cylinder actuator 19 including piston rod 20 and lever 21 is made accessible by means of a cover lid 23 provided in the sidewalls at the level of the turning shaft 17'. A semicircular formed opening 24 is provided in the upper portion of the boxed formed assembly of sidewalls l8 and this makes possible the movement of the bucket front portion 16 about the backwall 15.

The method of operation is as follows:

The bucket in closed condition, that is, when the bucket front portion 16 is against the backwall 15, is capable of being filled at ground level with load material by means of actuation of the cantilever boom and the dipping arm 6 simultaneously or by means of actuation of one of these two swingable arms. The bucket is maintained in a horizontal level during lifting to the height of the loading surface by means of tilting of the bucket by the cylinder actuator 8. The bucket front portion 16 is opened over the loading surface so that the load material drops vertically onto the part of the loading surface directly thereunder as determined by the operator.

Bulky materials, for example, large boulders, can be grasped and released over the loading surface due to the grasping type operation in the way of open or closed gating of the bucket in accordance with the present invention. The box formed housing is also advantageous in protecting the piston cylinder actuator means 19, 20 against damage from lead material such as dirt, rocks, dust and the like. The cover 23 provides access for service including lubrication of pivot points with respect to the actuator means 19, 20. The shaft 17 about which the front portion of the bucket turns is radially in alignment with the semicircular or crescent-shaped opening or slot 24. Slot means 24 is provided in at least one side of the box-formed housing and assures limits of travel with proper alignment of the bucket front portion during tilting movement thereof into open and closed positions with respect to the bucket back portion. The box-formed housing as well as the shaft 17 and slot 24 configuration afford rigidity and protection of the power transfer mechanism including the actuator 19, 20 for the bucket means. The triangular relationship of the rocker arm or link ll and coupling member l3 with respect to the pivots 10, I2 and 14 in locations surrounding the turning point or pivot 7 of the bucket is such that together with the box-formed housing on the bucket back portion, there is considerable mechanical advantage and strength for tilting movement of the bucket together with protection for the bucket pivot locations, particularly the protection for the piston cylinder actuator means 19, 20. The actuator means 19, 20 is enclosed within the box-formed housing of the bucket back portion including sidewalls l8 and interconnecting band 25. A pivot pin 26 journals the actuator means 19, at a lower end thereof between the sidewalls and is parallel to bolt 22 and shaft 17.

It is, of course, to be understood, that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular arrangements shown in the drawings, but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A bucket-actuating means for an excavating machine having a body relative to which a cantilever beam is journalcd to move up nd down and a dipper arm is pivotally connected to said cantilever beam at one end thereof movable to and fro with respect to said body, comprising: a bucket back portion and bucket front portion journaled at an upper pivot permitting opening and closing movement relative to each other, a pivot means interconnecting said bucket back portion and said dipper arm in a location below said upper pivot of said back and front portions, actuating means journaled to said dipper arm and having a force transmitting end point, a rocker arm pivotally joumaled above said pivot means to said dipper arm and said end point of said actuating means, a coupling member pivotally joined between said end point and said bucket back portion below both said pivot means and said upper pivot, said actuating means at said force transmitting end point thereof causing arm and coupling member movement for tilting said back portion about said pivot means, said bucket back portion having sidewalls forming side boundary thereof including an inner sidewall, and an outer sidewall and band means interconnecting said inner and outer sidewalls which are box forming for all around protective accommodation of the pivot actuation of said bucket front portion.

2. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 1, in which for opening and closing said bucket front portion relative to said bucket back portion an actuator is provided and is enclosed by said box forming sidewalls and band means.

3. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 1, in which an assembly opening is provided between said box forming sidewalls and a removable lid covers said assembly opening.

4. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 2, in which a bolt is provided transversely of said actuator and crescent-formed opening means in at least one of said sidewalls receive said bolt which transmits movement to effect opening and closing of said bucket front portion relative to said bucket back portion.

5. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 4, in which said upper pivot journaling said bucket front portion to said bucket back portion is radially aligned with said crescentformed opening means. v

6. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 5, in which a bellcrank level interconnects said bolt and said upper pivot.

7. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 6, in which a pin journals said actuator between said box forming sidewalls and is mounted transversely of said sidewalls below both said bolt and said upper pivot.

8. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 7, in which said pin is parallel to both said bolt and said upper pivot within said box forming sidewalls.

9. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 8, in which said arm, said coupling member and said bucket back portion are pivotally movable in a triangular relationship that is over center with respect to said pivot means and always to one side of said pin. 

1. A bucket-actuating means for an excavating machine having a body relative to which a cantilever beam is journaled to move up nd down and a dipper arm is pivotally connected to said cantilever beam at one end thereof movable to and fro with respect to said body, comprising: a bucket back portion and bucket front portion journaled at an upper pivot permitting opening and closing movement relative to each other, a pivot means interconnecting said bucket back portion and said dipper arm in a location below said upper pivot of said back and front portions, actuating means journaled to said dipper arm and having a force transmitting end point, a rocker arm pivotally journaled above said pivot means to said dipper arm and said end point of said actuating means, a coupling member pivotally joined between said end point and said bucket back portion below both said pivot means and said upper pivot, said actuating means at said force transmitting end point thereof causing arm and coupling member movement for tilting said back portion about said pivot means, said bucket back portion having sidewalls forming side boundary thereof including an inner sidewall, and an outer sidewall and band means interconnecting said inner and outer sidewalls which are box forming for all around protective accommodation of the pivot actuation of said bucket front portion.
 2. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 1, in which for opening and closing said bucket front portion relative to said bucket back portion an actuator is provided and is enclosed by said box forming sidewalls and band means.
 3. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 1, in which an assembly opening is provided between said box forming sidewalls and a removable lid covers said assembly opening.
 4. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 2, in which a bolt is provided transversely of said actuator and crescent-formed opening means in at least one of said sidewalls receive said bolt which transmits movement to effect opening and closing of said bucket front portion relative to said bucket back portion.
 5. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 4, in which said upper pivot journaling said bucket front portion to said bucket back portion is radially aligned with said crescent-formed opening means.
 6. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 5, in which a bellcrank level interconnects said bolt and said upper pivot.
 7. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 6, in which a pin journals said actuator between said box forming sidewalls and is mounted transversely of said sidewalls below both said bolt and said upper pivot.
 8. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 7, in which said pin is parallel to both said bolt and said upper pivot within said box forming sidewalls.
 9. The bucket-actuating means according to claim 8, in which said arm, said coupling member and said bucket back portion are pivotally movable in a triangular relationship that is over center with respect to said pivot means and always to one side of said pin. 